This hat tip goes to Kobe Bryant for giving the other side of the Celtics-Lakers rivalry a little boost.

The rehabbing Los Angeles star was asked on ESPN Radio to name the five greatest NBA players of all time, and he listed Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as his choices. But he wasn’t content to let the names speak for themselves — he gave special props to one player who wore Celtics green.

“I will say, as the years go on, people really forgot how great Larry Bird was,” he said. “He was ridiculous. And I grew up in L.A. — just like everyone else here — hating his guts. Dude — the guy was just money.”